Parliament to convene on Thursday in joint special session

The Senate and the Chamber of Deputies are convened for a joint extraordinary session on Thursday at noon to consider a motion of censure tabled by the Social Democratic Party (PSD) against the Orban Cabinet.

The decision regarding the convention of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate in an extraordinary session is signed by the chairs of the two legislative forums, Speaker Marcel Ciolacu and Chairman Robert Cazanciuc.

At a joint meeting on Monday, the standing bureaus decided that the censure motion "PNL Government - from pandemic to generalised bribery," initiated by PSD and signed by 205 senators and MPs, should be read on Thursday at noon.

The Social Democrats claim that government officials have violated all rules imposed on the public following the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The document dedicates a chapter to "PNL parties in the time of the pandemic," in which it shows that "members of the government have irretrievably lost their credibility for the way they have managed the pandemic."

It also has a chapter on "contradictory restrictions imposed on Romanian citizens." According to the Social Democrats, "another major cause of the Orban 2 government's loss of control over the pandemic was the endless series of contradictory decisions and measures."

PSD also mentions what they call the "plundering of the national budget under the guise of the pandemic," drawing attention to a recent report of the Court of Auditors on public expenditure during the COVID-19 state of emergency.

Last but not least, the Social Democrats claim that "the living standards of Romanians have collapsed" and "the people have lost everything they gained under the PSD government." According to the signatories of the motion, "The PNL government has brought back austerity, poverty and the vicious circle of low wages."

***

According to the Rules of Procedure of the joint sittings of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, a motion of censure is presented to the joint sitting of the two chambers five days of the date of submission, at the latest.

A debate on the motion of censure shall take place no later than three days of being tabled, at a joint sitting of the two chambers. The date and place of the joint sitting in which the presentation, debate and vote on the motion take place shall be communicated to the government by the speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, 24 hours before it takes place.

If the motion of censure fails to gain the majority required for its adoption, the government shall remain in office. At the same time, if the motion is defeated, lawmakers who have signed it can no longer initiate, in the same session, a new motion of censure, unless the government undertakes to assume responsibility for a programme, a general policy statement or a bill.

If the motion succeeds, by a majority vote of the lawmakers, the confidence vested by Parliament with the government is deemed withdrawn and the government is dismissed (Article 113 of the Constitution).